Television

Sunday, November 8, 2015

DEA doublespeak: Is marijuana a threat or not?

According to The Marshall Project, DEA Chief Chuck Rosenberg, a former prosecutor, called the claim that smoking marijuana has medicinal value (a notion embraced to some degree by 40 states) “a joke.” One day later, his DEA released an annual report suggesting that marijuana use is, literally, the last thing local police officials are worried about when it comes to drugs.
"What really bothers me is the notion that marijuana is also medicinal -- because it's not," Rosenberg said in a briefing to reporters. "We can have an intellectually honest debate about whether we should legalize something that is bad and dangerous, but don't call it medicine -- that is a joke," according to CBS News.
An increasing number of police officers around the United States are now saying that fighting marijuana is their lowest drug-related priority, according to a survey released earlier this week that formed part of the 2015 National Drug Threat Assessment Summary, the Washington Postreported.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration assessment asked a representative sample of 1,000 police officers around the country about what they saw as their biggest drug threats. All in all, in 2015, marijuana was the top choice of just 6% of officers and was dwarfed in significance by heroin (38%) and methamphetamine (33%). Prescription painkillers staked a middle spot with 15%, while cocaine edged out weed with 7%, according to News.Mic.

About Matt

An analysis of crime and punishment from the perspective of a former prosecutor and current criminal justice practitioner.
The views expressed on this blog are solely those of the author and do not reflect the opinions or postions of any county, state or federal agency.